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Phoenix Project has announced that its spiritual successor to City of Heroes will be named City of Titans. To help fund the game's development, a KickStarter program has begun in an effort to raise $320,000.

Missing Worlds Media presents City of Titans, the superhero MMORPG being developed by The Phoenix Project in the spirit of City of Heroes. Our goal is to deliver a unique massively multiplayer online roleplaying game, created from the community of a lost universe, to build a new community for a new world. A brave new world containing a wealth of player choices, from costumes to powers, it continues the traditions found in its spiritual predecessor, daring to reach for new innovations no other game will touch, while standing firmly on the feel and spirit of the old. Players will be able to choose their own adventure, tell their own tales, and have their own agency in a superhuman world.

City of Titans is set in a world where there is always hope, even in the darkest of times. The tradition of brightly colored costumes, brilliant heroics, and daring struggles to stand against the shadows cast during times of darkness and corruption. New heroes, your heroes, rise to make their mark on the world while their villainous counterparts lurk in the corners of alleys, behind governments, and even in the boardrooms of the wealthiest corporations. Humanity honors the fallen, and takes inspiration from the selfless sacrifices of heroes who have gone before.

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I'm not so sure about the future of this game... They don't seem to have any expert developers working with them at all from the sounds if it. I got that from the fact that they are only learning about the game engine that they want to work with this year...

I can already see a game filled with a ton of bugs, but hopefully I am wrong.

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It looked promising up until the point they lost confidence in just giving us something to fill our CoH carvings and instead started doing crap like this:

Bright Lights Big City - Sponsors at this level receive a handsome bundle of perks. First, you’ll get the opportunity to reserve your Global Nickname before the general release. Additionally, you’ll see the following in game rewards: A Kickstarter only badge and title for our founding heroes ( and villains! ), an exclusive costume set that will never be available again, and a prestige travel power + All previous rewards.

This fake scarcity is something that desperate companies use for cash grabs. Adding a badge is just another low blow. The main reason this is bad is because people who might be in a bind financially, stationed overseas and the like will miss out and never be able to get it again. If they want to do this for their own game that's all well and good but don't you dare drag the CoH name into this. You can't say you are true fans and realy care about CoH is you plan on doing stuff like this. Also I heard the game will be Box + sub + cash shop. You realize the only reason CoH did the cash shop was that NCSoft forced it on them. Do you think if they had their way it would have that?

By the way this doesn't include the game or anything like that. For that you have to cough up 50 bucks. Just a sad and disgusting cash grab.

Besides the CoH revival effort, there are also people reverse engineering the game as well as another spiritual successor game like this called Heroes and Villains. I'm going to keep my eye on them. This one has burned it's bridges with me personally.

Well the game has raised 80k in one day. I just feel bad that they are taking advantage of people's love for CoH for this. Btw this drive will barely cover art assets and paying for licensing. So expect probably 2-4 more drives.

Also does anyone think the logo for the game looks like those old Topps Refractor cards from the early 90s?

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Now Dashi.. tell us how you really feel... You just want everything for free.. we get it... Saddly free does not a meal pay.

Now i have to agree with the whole "little to no experience does not bode well" seeing as this game will prolly take 4-5 years to develop and i have no idea how they will finance year 2-5 i have no idea. Free work only get you so far.

Also i am not sure there is enough interest in this game to keep it alive.

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Originally posted by Razeekster

I'm not so sure about the future of this game... They don't seem to have any expert developers working with them at all from the sounds if it. I got that from the fact that they are only learning about the game engine that they want to work with this year...

I can already see a game filled with a ton of bugs, but hopefully I am wrong.

You don't need expert developers to make a game. Everyone has to start somewhere.

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While I would/will play it when/if its ever finished, its not something I feel I could invest in. It just doesnt look to be a sound investment at all, nothing about it shines with focus and confidence and direction, which are what you need a pitch to have, and without those things at the start its not a good recipe for success.

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Originally posted by Sciva

Originally posted by Razeekster

I'm not so sure about the future of this game... They don't seem to have any expert developers working with them at all from the sounds if it. I got that from the fact that they are only learning about the game engine that they want to work with this year...

I can already see a game filled with a ton of bugs, but hopefully I am wrong.

You don't need expert developers to make a game. Everyone has to start somewhere.

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It looked promising up until the point they lost confidence in just giving us something to fill our CoH carvings and instead started doing crap like this:

Bright Lights Big City - Sponsors at this level receive a handsome bundle of perks. First, you’ll get the opportunity to reserve your Global Nickname before the general release. Additionally, you’ll see the following in game rewards: A Kickstarter only badge and title for our founding heroes ( and villains! ), an exclusive costume set that will never be available again, and a prestige travel power + All previous rewards.

This fake scarcity is something that desperate companies use for cash grabs. Adding a badge is just another low blow. The main reason this is bad is because people who might be in a bind financially, stationed overseas and the like will miss out and never be able to get it again. If they want to do this for their own game that's all well and good but don't you dare drag the CoH name into this. You can't say you are true fans and realy care about CoH is you plan on doing stuff like this. Also I heard the game will be Box + sub + cash shop. You realize the only reason CoH did the cash shop was that NCSoft forced it on them. Do you think if they had their way it would have that?

By the way this doesn't include the game or anything like that. For that you have to cough up 50 bucks. Just a sad and disgusting cash grab.

I'm sorry, so you're saying $25 is too high of a threshold to give out a special badge and costume to their supporters? Really?! I think it's more than reasonable to have it at that level and as for complaining about $50 to get a copy of the game, plus all the previous perks, you have got to be kidding me. You get the game, a month of VIP and headstart access. Complaining for the sake of complaining just makes you look like a troll, unless you have some personal experience with the developers fueling your criticisms that you would care to share? Didn't think so.

Just for the record as well, they've raised over 127k in UNDER 24 hours, so there are obviously a lot of people who believe in what they are doing. Just because they aren't under the thumb of some big Publisher does not mean they can't produce a good piece of work.

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I am more amazed at the fact at this time of writing there were 750 people backing and the total amount was 111 thousand dollars.

Which is 148 dollars per person on average.

Economic crysis? Where?

Talk about people having financial crysis dishing out money on a total vapourware product so far!

1, why are you assuming they have a financial crisis? And I'm sure most people gave less and some, who have greater means, gave more. Or hopefully have greater means but it's their investment money i suppose.

2, As far as the second part of the highlighted part; isn't that what you do when you invest in a startup company (or many companies for that matter)? You put money into something you think will be successful but there is never a guarantee.

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An existing franchise, CoH, is looking to launch a new generation game.... why do they need kickstarter funds?

Why is the franchise owner or publisher not prepared to invest in the next generation?

Why do the banks not support an existing company/franchise?

Why is the customer asked to fund R&D, no other industry asks the customer to pay up front, they invest profits.

The company wants to lease a game engine, why do they not already have en existing agreement. Even so they then quote software overheads for designers, do they not have these designers and software available from CoH?

Why do they not have a cash investment if related to the CoH franchise?

Why wont banks/investors assist an existing company?

Put your money in the bank for 5 years in high interest savings account and profit. Any MMO fan with a weekend could draw up the business plan being presented on kickstarter.

If you got money to throw away and love the presentation on kickstarter then feel free to give you money to people who have plenty already, but my advice is look for a GENUINE indie project not a cash-cow.

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Tablix, perhaps you should actually read about the Kickstarter before making comments. This is not a continuation of the CoH game by the previous publisher NCSoft.

This is currently a volunteer project for a "spiritual successor" to CoH. The reason they haven't gone to a Publisher is they do not want to be dictated design and they intend to keep the "feel" and community that was present in the original. That is why they require funds. It would be easier to just read their Kickstarter page, which I assume you haven't.

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An existing franchise, CoH, is looking to launch a new generation game.... why do they need kickstarter funds?

Why is the franchise owner or publisher not prepared to invest in the next generation?

Why do the banks not support an existing company/franchise?

Why is the customer asked to fund R&D, no other industry asks the customer to pay up front, they invest profits.

I don't think you quite understand what's going on here. Please read that previous sentence as, "You're wrong." It's not an existing franchise as in a game in the CoH world. It's a new game that intends to somewhat 'feel' like CoH without infringing on the game ... thus a 'spiritual sequel'.

Last year NCSoft killed the game City of Heroes. After the servers shut down a couple different efforts to make similarly superhero themed games that shared aspects of City of Heroes that those development teams thought were 'essential' to the fun of CoH. City of Titans is one of those efforts. The developing company is made up of unpaid volunteers and it has no affiliation to NCSoft.

Now that's not to say you should immediately fund the game or anything, that's a whole other decision but your reasoning there is wrong.

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Tablix, perhaps you should actually read about the Kickstarter before making comments. This is not a continuation of the CoH game by the previous publisher NCSoft.

This is currently a volunteer project for a "spiritual successor" to CoH. The reason they haven't gone to a Publisher is they do not want to be dictated design and they intend to keep the "feel" and community that was present in the original. That is why they require funds. It would be easier to just read their Kickstarter page, which I assume you haven't.

Somehow I think that "feel" is going to be ruined by the fact that they want to do a subscription model and a cash shop... That and like I said before, they have little to no actual experience.

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In 24 hours, the Kickstarter has nearly reached 50% of goal. There are a number of people posting to FB and forums saying that they are currently at home thanks to the shutdown of the US federal government, so there's a lot of potential money that depends heavily on timing and politics.

This is a news piece, not an ad. It got your attention long enough for you to formulate and express an opinion, so you're thinking about it. Mission accomplished.

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Originally posted by SkogSonso unoriginal. city of heroes fan remake..

Just to be clear on this....

1. City of Heroes.....

2. Champions Online.....

3. DC Universe Online.....

and now this would make the 4th major superhero MMORPG (where you can create your own characters [I don't count Marvel Heroes]), assuming it comes out.

As opposed to the hundreds of sword and sorcery iterations we have seen and are still coming out, as listed on the mmorpg.com game list. So, really, "unoriginal" -- that's the best that you have to comment on?

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I don't see any reason to believe that they can pull it off.

Some parts of making an MMORPG are hard. Not "impossible to do" hard. But certainly "you're going to need serious talent of the sort you're unlikely to find in a volunteer pool" hard. Even if they've got people who can do it lined up, what happens when things get delayed (and yes, that's a "when" not an "if", even for professionals) and those people discover that they need a job with a paycheck in order to pay the bills?

I'm not against amateur-made games. I'm working on one myself. But I do think that you've got to demonstrate that you can do some of the challenging things that go into an MMORPG before it makes sense to give you any money. Passion alone is not enough to create a polished MMORPG, nor is passion plus software licenses.

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In reply to those asking if i read the kickstarter information, I did what any business person does. I went straight to the funding section, found ZERO information that helps me decide if they know what the hell they are doing. I found they are leasing an engine, paying tax, buying software ect but no details of timescales, staff, marketing, launch costs, hardware costs and thats just the basics you need on a business plan.

From that point I have decided I dont need to read any more as this its just wish lists, marketing babble and ideology. If you cant provide a solid business model then you dont have a business, you are a charity. The budget they speak of wont last them the first 2 years, then they will need more investment from somewhere.

Keep throwing your money at these companies if you choose, I am just trying to highlight its simply not as golden as they will lead you to believe.

$320,000 will vanish before they even got a beta build and a demo video, thats my opinion based on previous experience.